But now, he wasn’t smiling. As a result, the air around him also felt chilly.

“How would you describe my face?”

“If you don’t smile, you look cold.”

Without knowing where this place was due to focusing on Leharht, Etienne stayed quiet as he directed.

Although not a chair, Etienne, who ended up sitting in a relatively spacious place, closely stared at Leharht, who knelt in front of her with one knee.

“In my past life, Your Highness didn’t smile much. I even thought it might be because you weren’t close to me.”

Leharht, silently listening to Etienne’s words, nodded.

“At that time, even if I didn’t like it, I had to see a lot. So it was tough, and I wasn’t interested in anything.”

Though I’m not exactly sure what “even if I didn’t like it, I had to see a lot” means, I seemed to have a vague understanding. Seeing Etienne’s expression, Leharht laughed and added.
“The one who schemed to seize power ended up getting sick and dying, while the person who was in love and happy was abandoned and saddened. I saw such a future. It’s not that I only see bad futures, but it was difficult for me to bear everything I saw alone.”

As if there were no other reasons, when Etienne stared at him, Leharht shrugged his shoulders. He refrained from speaking, as the daily suffering from splitting headaches was unrelated to him smiling.

Then, he held Etienne’s hand. As he gently caressed each of her small fingers, her hand responded, grabbing his hand.

“Since I met you, everything has become real. I don’t have to see the future, so now my mind is much more at ease. And you’re also amusing.”

Leharht pushed his finger firmly between Etienne’s fingers and held it tightly. Etienne murmured as she looked at that finger.

“There’s a different atmosphere when Your Highness smiles and when you don’t.”

“If I don’t smile, the atmosphere becomes heavy again. No one can easily approach, you know.”

Leharht spoke, moving his face around as if telling her to observe carefully.

After showing it to some extent, he sent a gaze asking how it was. Etienne expressed her honest thoughts.

“Even when Your Highness doesn’t smile, it’s cool.”

“Just cool?”

“You’re handsome.”

“Say more.”
“Is there anything else you want to hear? If you said I’m cool and handsome, that’s enough,” Etienne said, swallowing a sigh and lowering her head.

“I don’t get bored even when I’m with you, Your Highness.”

“…What?”

Leharht, who had hoped for compliments on his facial features, looked at Etienne as if he were stunned. However, instead of changing the topic, Etienne added another word.

“It seems even more chaotic when I’m with you.”

She realized belatedly that she had been absorbed in the conversation and had only now become aware of her situation. Right at this moment.

Etienne looked around where she was sitting. It was a flat rock with a thick blanket spread over it.

When she looked at the picnic basket and another neatly folded blanket beside it, a smile naturally spread across her face.

“You prepared here.”

As expected, he didn’t call her without doing anything.

As Etienne gently touched the blanket with one hand, Leharht approached and sat down. One hand was still held by him, so Etienne looked at Leharht as her hand followed him.

“For the first date, a picnic is the best, right?”

“Earlier, you said this is where you died…”

If you ask why she changed her words like that, Etienne looked at the basket.

“That’s that, and this is this.”

Leharht pulled the basket between the two. Unable to take her eyes off the basket, Etienne stared at it. Leharht playfully smiled and pushed his hand into the basket.

“Do you want to know what’s inside?”

“I’m curious, so I wanted to tease you.”
“Really strange personality. It would have been even stranger when seeing the future.”

Etienne said, looking at Leharht as if he was too much. As she shook her head even to her shoulders, Leharht, looking puzzled, asked.

“Why would it be even stranger to see the future?”

“Just my feeling.”

“It seems like you just wanted to say my personality is not great.”

Etienne answered with a shrug of her shoulders. Without saying more, Leharht withdrew the hand that was rummaging through the basket. Etienne followed his hand with her eyes.

“Huh?”

What Leharht pulled out was a bottle.

“Alcohol?”

“Is it okay? It has low alcohol content and a good aroma.”

He also laid out cheese that could be paired with it. Etienne watched that scene quietly and then looked up at the sky. Although the sunlight was somewhat blocked by the leaves, it was still bright daylight around.

Alcohol at this time…

“It’s fine.”

Etienne declined the glass offered by Leharht and only accepted the bottle.

Already, the scent of alcohol was gently wafting through the refreshing grassy aroma. Etienne placed the bottle to her lips and took a sip. Even though she had only taken one sip, the lingering fragrance of the flowers remained in her mouth where the alcohol had passed.

It was quite okay with just one sip, and at the same time, she suddenly remembered what day it was today.

Etienne slowly savored it and tightly gripped the bottle she should drink. Then, she started to gulp it down in one go.